Why I adore librarians

In case you haven’t had your fill on the Jupiter study, and I admit that I have not, you might want to visit a thought-provoking discussion going on this week over at the NY Times ‘Well’ blog. (Click here).

A multitude of health care practitioners (MDs, physical therapist, nutritionist, etc.), patients, and regular folks are posting their thoughts on how (and how not) to interpret the data, the use of C reactive protein testing, personal experiences while taking a statin, how to lower inflammation without using drugs, etc.

Well readers also provide a smattering of links to other interesting posts on these and other related matters. As always, I find the comments as interesting and entertaining as the post itself.

As if this weren’t enough, I learned about a blog written by a woman who goes by the name of ‘The Healthy Librarian’ (see her comment, # 26). She’s a medical librarian (at a leading US medical center) with 36 years in the “business.”

I have enormous respect for librarians, and her blog – called Happy Healthy Long Life: A Medical Librarian’s Adventures in Evidence-based Living – promises to be quite educational. For instance, check out the July 4th post on olive oil. And for those looking for a great little tutorial on Dr. Esselstyn’s work, read her June 29 post.

Very well organized. But what else would you expect from a librarian? Actually, she’s a delightful writer, too. Click here for the link to her blog.

So far I’ve only managed to skim through the Cholesterol section, but I’m most eager to see what’s in store in Vegetarian Recipes. There’s even a section called Movies. On her Oct. 5 Movie post I found a list entitled, “The thirteen most spiritually literate movies for 2008- movies rating a five out of five.”

Get out the popcorn, Gwen, it’s going to be a long, cold winter. Can’t wait to watch “The Dhamma Brothers,” assuming I can locate a copy of it somewhere. (Hmm…it’s also a book.) The plot sounds right up my alley: “a remarkable documentary about inmates at an Alabama prison who do a 10-day silent meditation retreat which opens them to the experience of inner peace and compassion.”

2 Responses

Wow, Gwen! Did you ever make my day! You sure know how to make someone feel great. I’m so glad to have “re-found” YOUR blog. I remember finding it last Spring, and then poof! I failed to put it on my RSS feed & it was gone from memory. Your story is an inspiration to everyone who wants to live a “happy healthy long life”.

I look forward to learning from you (& your readers). You definitely have the right prescription: diet, exercise & stress reduction. It’s just so amazing that it really can be that simple. Actually, it’s not simple at all–it takes lots of time, preparation & dedication.

Gotta go–need to get in some exercise before I attack this house in prep for the house guests that will soon descend–and plan the menu for 3 days of company–& try to keep it healthy.

BTW–I can’t wait to see “The Dhamma Brothers” either. I’m hoping it’s at my public library. Their collection is amazing. Keep in touch!